A stroke is a sudden loss of brain function caused by a blockage of a blood vessel to the brain (ischemic stroke) or a rupture of a blood vessel to the brain (hemorrhagic stroke). Each year, more than 700,000 people in the U.S. alone suffer a new or recurrent stroke and the consequences can be devastating. Over 150,000 of these events end in death, and many of those who survive are left seriously and permanently impaired. During each minute of progression of a stroke, about two million brain cells die. Approximately fourteen billion brain cells die during the average ten-hour stroke. As such, the time from onset of a stroke to its diagnosis and treatment by medical personnel is critical.
Accordingly, it would be highly desirable to provide techniques for detecting the onset of a stroke within a patient for promptly notifying family members, caregivers or emergency personnel, and it is to that end that the invention is generally directed.